U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is urging North Korea's new leadership to choose what she calls the “path of peace” following the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

Clinton said late Monday, December 19, that she hopes North Korea will be committed to “improving relations with its neighbors and respecting the rights of its people.”

She also expressed concern about the well-being of the North Korean people, saying the U.S. is ready to help the isolated communist nation to “usher in a new era of peace, prosperity and lasting security” in the region.

Earlier, Clinton spoke with Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba, where she said the U.S. and Japan share a common interest in a stable and peaceful transition of power in Pyongyang.

Meanwhile, U.S. President Barack Obama told Japan's Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda by telephone that Washington is committed to the defense of its allies and the stability of the Korean peninsula.

In Seoul, President Lee canceled all of his scheduled events, convened a National Security Council meeting and placed the South Korean military on emergency alert. South Korean media say aerial surveillance near the North Korean border has been stepped up, The VOA News reported.

The two Koreas have remained technically at war since 1953 when their three-year conflict ended only with an armistice, not a peace treaty.